A Deficit Raptor Spends

It is unfair to call me a "deficit hawk." Hawks are too meek and mild to represent how I feel about the Federal deficit.


So I instead call myself a "deficit raptor," raptor being the term used to collectively describe ALL birds of prey, having been derived from the French word "rapere" meaning to seize or take by force. And while I would not take all of it ("it" being Federal spending), I would take a lot - by force if I had to.


And while I would not cut my 90-year-old aunt's Social Security payments if I thought it would lead to a balanced budget and elimination of the Federal deficit, I would have to think about it. (Don't worry, Aunt Anne, I am just trying to make a point. I still love you.)


But even Raptors are smart enough to leave some nibbles behind when eating them might endanger their very well being. 


Such is the case for protecting the F-35 Program and its thousand New Jersey jobs. And while I care about the 126,000 jobs in the 46 other states that the program provides for once, I have to be parochial. 


Federal budgets are about choices. So let's assume that even the grandest of deficit hawks - say a Paul Ryan - is going to fail to eliminate Federal spending in its entirety. Some things will stay and some will go. The F-35 should stay.


Unless you have been in a cave and have not read a newspaper in a few years and thus believe that peace is about to break out worldwide any second now, foregoing the need for a U.S. Military presence, we need the F-35. The program will deliver more than 2,400 aircraft for the United States and our allies. One only needs to look to Libya to understand the importance of air power to a successful military operation and foreign policy at a minimal cost in human life. And one only needs to look to Iraq to understand that Americans will no longer tolerate the sacrifice of its soldiers. Our current fleet of aircraft is older than at any other point in our history. We have to modernize.


So if the program protects us; saves lives AND happens to be beneficial to New Jersey also, well that is a formula that this deficit raptor can live with. And one around which our entire Congressional delegation should unite.

Happy St. Patrick's Day - Violet Style

Violet

Violet.

A Princess, named after her mom's favorite color and for the color of royalty and a beautiful tiny flower, was born at 10:14 p.m. on March 1, 2011, following a long two-day campaign. She weighed in at 7 pounds and 5 ounces. A "Jersey Girl," Violet was born at Virtua hospital in Mt. Holly.

Violet was greeted immediately by her mom and dad, Donica and Rick, and shortly thereafter by her grandparents, Joyce and Donald and Robin and Dave, and her aunt and uncle, Lesley and Robin.

Violet came into the world announcing her outlook on life - face up - always looking to the Heavens.

Violet is doing well as are her mom and dad. Her grandparents are beat, however.

Spring!

Ok, well it is just around the corner.

These showed up in our front yard today.

The Christie Contradiction

My Governor says he is not running for President. 

I believe him. I really do.

I believe him when he says “I’m not ready.” I disagree with him, but I believe him.

I believe him when he says,“You have to feel in your heart and mind you’re ready for the presidency. I’m not stupid. I see the opportunity. That’s not the reason to run.” I agree with him that simply because there is an opportunity is not reason enough to run.

But there is a contradiction here: Almost every time Chris Christie opens his mouth and speaks - whether from the Clerk’s podium in the chamber of the General Assembly where he is delivering a budget address or at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington DC - he reminds us how desperately America needs him to be in the White House. Not later, now. As soon as he can get there.

I hear the Governor say while discussing the depths of New Jersey’s fiscal woes in Washington at AEI, “This is a problem that took a decade to develop and it's going to take longer than a year for us to fix. Fiscal discipline is extraordinarily important not just for New Jersey but for America.”

Then I think to myself, “Well shouldn’t we get started right now on America?” How much deeper is the federal fiscal hole going to be after four more years of fiscal insanity in Washington? Is it a fissure from which we will ever be able to climb? 

And for those of you who think that we have somehow constructed a levee to hold back the flood of red ink simply because we elected a few Republican members of Congress who talked a good game in the previous election, I want to remind you what happened the last time they were in charge. In fact let me remind you of what happened just a few weeks ago when it took a mini-revolt by Tea Party members in the House Republican Caucus to hold the Leadership to the puny $100 billion spending cut promise made just a few months earlier.

Then Governor Christie explains in plain English to us that “the way we used to think about politics and unfortunately the way I fear they're thinking about politics still in Washington ... says lie, deceive, obfuscate and make it to the next election.” And a lot of Americans find that refreshing. Quite frankly, I find it sad. I am saddened by the fact that so many Americans have come to expect so little from our elected leadership. Shouldn’t that be the norm - or “The New Normal” as the Governor has described New Jersey? But I have no hope that the coming Presidential election will give us anything other than the same old deceptions without Chris in the race. And his frank way of speaking has given that hope to many others.

I listened as Chris Christie said, “I hear people saying, we're going too fast, we're going too fast. We need to slow down a little bit. I hear the same thing in New Jersey.” And he adds, “Leadership today in America has to be about doing the big things and being courageous.”

And then I remember what former US House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt explained to me a few years ago, “Congress cannot walk and chew gum at the same time. It is not built that way.” So I get frustrated because I agree with Christie that there are so many “big things” we need to get done in America and I have no hope they will get done and he tells me I have to wait six more years, until Inauguration day 2017, before we even begin the work.

I am sorry Governor. I do not believe America can wait, or what will be left of it. That is why I will continue to beg, plead and coax Americans to come to www.draftchristie2012.com and add their names to the thousands of us who believe your time is now. As I have said before, “If you were volunteering for the job, we would not need a draft, now would we?”

THE Voice

I am the voice of conservatism.

There I said it.

I have taken the mantle. I have assumed the throne. I sit in judgement.

Pretenders to the conservative crown like Steve Lonegan, Rick Shaftan and Mark Levin have been deposed. Their harsh and false verdicts have done them in.

Lonegan, who once convinced a handful of people in a tiny town in Bergen County to elect him Mayor  but has won absolutely nothing since, is not the King.

Shaftan, who has never done any REAL work in the conservative trenches to cut a tax or a budget or save an unborn life - instead, hiding behind the skirts of candidates, is not the King.

Levin, who once sacrificed at the altar of Icon Reagan, but who has since left it to others, is not the King.

No, I am King now.

And what has this unholy trinity done to offend ME - the new conservative sovereign? They have ridiculously declared that Chris Christie is not conservative. Balderdash.

They say that our Governor - and MY presidential candidate - is not "conservative enough" because he does not pass their own litmus test on gun control, immigration and global warming, which, in my dominion of the right, are issues 17, 18 and 19 on the conservative hit list.

But just what is our Governor's "conservative crime" on even these three secondary issues:

On immigration, he has chosen not to weigh in on the folly that has become the national immigration debate. It is not a battle he has chosen to fight. So "off with his head" the pseudo cons say!

On gun control, despite a bold Christmas commutation of a man wrongfully imprisoned on a gun offense, Chris is just not good enough on Second Amendment issues for LeShategan. My goodness, he had the audacity to call Obama's Tucson speech "excellent."

And despite publicly raising doubts about the science behind global warming and subjecting himself to harsh criticism from the left, Christie somehow favors "cap and trade" in the small minds of these conservatives because he has not taken the Garden State out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), something he could not unilaterally do even if he wanted to. "Christie is GREEN," they scream. Oh gasp.

So what are the most important conservative issues for those who reside in the Kingdom of SicoCon?

We favor a small, non-invasive Government. On this issue, Governor Christie gets 1600 on the Conservative SAT. He has been perfect.

We favor a strong national defense and taking the war on terrorism (That's right. We believe it is a war.) to enemy territory. As US Attorney, Chris Christie was a foot soldier in this war.

We believe in God, in traditional family values, the sanctity of marriage and the right to life for every human being. In just the past 13 months, Chris Christie protected New Jersey's marriage laws by energizing Republican senators; was the first NJ Governor in its history to address the annual Pro-Life rally on the State House steps; and took a boatload of crap because he would not disappoint his children and cancel a long scheduled trip to Disney World when it started to snow.  And he keeps his faith private and personal, as it should be.

All other issues come after these.

Chris Christie is not just conservative in my world, he is off the charts strong. He speaks out when he should and shuts up when it doesn't matter.

So the next time someone wants to decide who is conservative and who isn't, you should ask "WWSS" - What Would Sico Say?

And ignore the temptation to be led astray by false idols.

If any one among you considers himself wise in this age, let him become a fool, so as to become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God ...
1 Cor 3:18-19

New Addition to Sico Family

Ha. Fooled you. No, Donica and Rick's baby has not arrived yet. Our granddaughter is due February 22nd.

But Lesley and Robin got a new puppy - Professor Elmer Pugglesworth.

You can call him Elmer.

Here are some pictures.

This Week's "Storm of the Century"

Snow Blower Man

I do not have a lot of heroes.

Joe Namath, Mickey Mantle and Bobby Kennedy when I was young. Certainly my mom, the greatest cook who ever lived, and my Dad, the single most selfless man I have ever met. And the guys who run into buildings when they are on fire or about to collapse or both because "it is their job." That is pretty much it for my hero world.

But there is a neighbor who is getting close. I call him "Snow Blower Man." I sing it when he comes around, dancing like a little child. Sometimes I shout it. My wife Joyce thinks I am nuts. I might have learned his name some time ago. I might even have been told where he lives, but it does not matter because I do not remember. And even if I did, I would still call him "Snow Blower Man." That is who he is.

Snow Blower Man comes to my house and the homes of my neighbors every time it snows. This morning he came. He wasn't wearing a hat; just a pair of gloves and a jacket that appropriately read "Staff."

The first time he came, six years ago following a particularly heavy snowstorm, our walkway was cleared before we even got up out of bed. Rarely have you seen a happier pajama-clad man. I shouted to Joyce, "Someone shoveled our walk!" Just a few weeks in our new Riverton home, I thought we had moved to Paradise - a cold and snowy Paradise, but a Paradise nonetheless.

Snow Blower Man does not simply make a narrow pass down the block. No, he comes up all the way to our front steps, cutting a wide path from edge to edge. Our home is on a corner lot and our sidewalk has to be a good 60 yards or so. Snow Blower Man covers every inch.

My children have accused me of having a "bromance" with Snow Blower Man. So be it. I love the man.

In the six years that Snow Blower Man has been rescuing me from the back-breaking, heart-attack inducing task of clearing my walk, I have learned more about him and the men he represents.

He lives across the street, down the block, in the yellow house. I learned he is Irish, as in Irish from Ireland. He came to this country as an adult who had NEVER seen snow in his native land. (I did not even know that it does not snow in parts of Ireland.) He loves the white stuff so much, he asked his wife to get him a snow blower for Christmas one year. The rest, and his legend, is history.

I have also learned that Snow Blower Man is not unique. He is a member of a special class of men who own snow blowers. I know that because I was singing the praises of Snow Blower Man to a friend and he told me he does the same thing in his Pennington neighborhood. I hope he is as revered by HIS neighbors as Snow Blower Man is by this one.

And as I lift my hot chocolate in praise, all warm and comfortable in my home, please join me in saying:

"Long live Snow Blower Men!"

It was FUN!!!!!!

Our annual Holiday Open House at our Riverton home was Saturday December 18th and I wanted to share a few of the photos with you.

First we have Joyce with Congressman-elect Jon Runyan. Jon is such a kind and gentle and sincere man. Capitol Hill is going to be a better place when he gets there. We were honored to have him at our home.

Former New Jersey Assembly Speaker Chuck Haytaian asks Governor Jim Florio a question he says he has been waiting 20 years to ask while Lucinda Florio looks on! I know the question and I know the answer, but I am not saying.

Trenton's best lobbyist, Russ Bent, surrounded by two beautiful women: His wife Kay and J. Seward Johnson Jr. attorney extraordinaire Betsy Sweetser.

MY Assemblyman, Jack Conners, and his wife Rosemary with longtime friends from Virginia Mark and Debbie Norman.

Former Collingswood Mayor and current Camden County Counsel Mike Brennan with former Florio Chief of Staff Joe Salema and his "friend" Marcy Dalsey.

New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute President and CEO David Knowlton imparts sage counsel to Dilworth Paxson Attorney Brett Wiltsey and Brett's wife and Brennan Daughter Meredith.

ESPN's Sal Paolantonio and wife Lynn.

Our "Doctor Neighbors" Dave and Liz Rosvold talk healthcare with Dave Knowlton while I pretend to understand what they are discussing.

I make a rather dramatic point to my friend, mentor and best "gut" politician in New Jersey, Speaker Chuck Haytaian while son Darrell listens in.

Quality Institute Chief of Staff Allison Dubois and husband Rick looking splendid by the fireplace.

Children. There were so many children! (And we loved every minute of it.)

A congressman-elect, a former governor and a former speaker discuss policy?

Our Lady of Lourdes lobbyist Jim Wallace with me, Runyan and Knowlton.

We LOVE it that our daughters' friends join us every year, even if they are goofy.

But some of them get it from their parents. Our friends Ken and Barb McMillan.

Every Republican's favorite Democrat, Karin Elkis, with husband and new Florio partner Steve Weinstein.

My (new and improved) train set.

And the world's largest Antipasti salad (with its creators).

Have a Merry Christmas and a great New Year. See you all next year.

A Walk in the Arboretum

As Peggy Noonan pointed out in her November 19th Wall Street Journal column (http://online.wsj.com/article/declarations.html), families will be gathering for the Thanksgiving weekend and catching up, reminiscing and discussing all sorts of family issues, from the trivial and inconsequential to the monumental and life-changing. 

For some Republican families, however, that conversation may affect the future of our nation as well. The Pawlenty's, the Huckabee's, the Romney's, the Palin's and the Gingrich's will almost certainly be having "the conversation" that Noonan describes as "talking it through, sometimes for the first time and sometimes for the tenth."

"It," of course, is the decision on whether to seek the Republican nomination for President in 2012.

There is one other family, not mentioned by Noonan, that I truly hope begins to have that conversation soon: The Christie's.

Perhaps Chis and Mary Pat Christie can go for another historic "walk in the woods" that, from a historical perspective, may someday rival Chief US negotiator Paul Nitze's informal stroll with his Soviet counterpart that gave new life to stalled nuclear disarmament discussions in Geneva in 1982.

There are quite a few beautiful places in and around Mendham where Chris and Mary Pat can get away and walk. There is the Cold Hill Reserve, Buttermilk Falls, Tempe Wick Reserve, the Buck Hill Tract and the Mendham Golf Course. But perhaps the most appropriate place would be along "Patriots Path" at the Mendham Arboretum.

What they might say to one another will, of course, remain between the two of them. What they choose to share with their children is up to them. But it is the children that should be the focus.

As some of you know, I have been an advocate for a 2012 Chris Christie Presidential candidacy and have even created a website at which support can be registered: www.draftchristie2012.com.

Many have said to me: "You know that Chris does not want to run for President, don't you?"

My response is always the same: "I know. That is why I am doing this. If he was volunteering, we would not have to draft him, now would we?"

But more importantly, I have become convinced that Chris Christie is the right person at the right time historically. I am not convinced that any of the aforementioned Republican candidates can beat the incumbent or do the job that is necessary.

We need a President who can say "No" even when it is the unpopular thing to say. America is broke. We are not "bankrupt" because we can certainly "service any claim" made against us. But for how long? On the current path, I am certain that the unthinkable could very well happen: America will be unable to write the check to fulfill its obligations. We are on the wrong trajectory.

Chris Christie in 10 short months has proven two things to me. He understands that simply bending the cost curve a little will get our state to fiscal solvency; and, even slight changes to that curve are painful and come with their own political consequences. But that has not slowed New Jersey's "man in a hurry" even a little.

Here is the bottom line: America needs Chris Christie's impatience. We needed it yesterday, but we will take it tomorrow. The day after tomorrow may be too late.

So Governor, talk about the kids while walking along Patriots Path. And ask what kind of nation we are leaving them. And ask "Can I make a difference?" If the answer is "yes," please volunteer so I can close the books on my draft.

My Thanksgiving Playlist

Christmas playlists are easy. There are one hundred million billion Christmas songs. Thanksgiving playlists are harder. So if you are looking for suggestions, here is my Thanksgiving playlist (And, yes, I do like Country music):

My Thanksgiving Don Henley

Sweet Potato Pie James Taylor

Pilgrim Enya

Thanksgiving Day Jeff Gorski

Holiday Madonna

Thankful Kelly Clarkson

Zombie The Cranberries

Cold Turkey John Lennon

Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree The Andrews Sisters

Thank You Dido

Homeward Bound Simon & Garfunkel

Rice And Gravy Blues Link Davis

Thanksgiving Day Denise Vasquez

Pilgrimage Suzanne Vega

Thankful Josh Groban

Turnips John Pinette

Thank You Keith Urban

Thanks A Lot Martina McBride

I Wanna Thank Everyone Buddy Jewell

Blessed Elton John

Harvest Moon Neil Young

Over the River Turkey Bunch

Be Thankful Natalie Cole

Cranberry Sauce Kati Mac

Apple, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie Jay & The Techniques

Alice's Restaurant Massacre Arlo Guthrie

(There's No Place Like) Home For The Holidays Garth Brooks

Amazing Grace Joan Baez

Underappreciated Christina Aguilera

Comin' Home Lynyrd Skynyrd

God Bless The USA Lee Greenwood

Where Corn Don't Grow Travis Tritt

God Only Knows The Beach Boys

Bless the Broken Road Rascal Flatts

Family LeAnn Rimes

One Of Us Joan Osborne

Home Alan Jackson

Make It With You Bread

Home Sweet Home Carrie Underwood

Go Your Own Way The Cranberries

Pilgrim Eric Clapton

Bread And Butter The Newbeats

1979 Smashing Pumpkins

Halfway Home Jason Mraz

Temporary Home Carrie Underwood

November Rain Guns N' Roses

Home Sheryl Crow

King Harvest (Has Surely Come) The Band

Indian Summer The Doors

Shadowboxer Fiona Apple

Coming Home Sugarland

Feels Like Home LeAnn Rimes

The Homecoming Steven Hall

God Bless America Celine Dion

Apply Now Before it is Too Late: The 8 Best New Jersey Jobs Currently Vacant

Looking for work? There are some great jobs open right now. Dust off your resume and apply now. Here is my list of the 8 best jobs now vacant:

1. CEO, Choose New Jersey - You answer directly to the Lt. Governor and the CEOs of more than a dozen of New Jersey's most important firms, including Verizon, South Jersey Gas, Novartis, Bank of America, United Water, American Water, PSEG and Prudential. Oh, and by the way, they have already given $7 million toward the effort so your six-figure salary is secure. You better hurry on this one. The search is underway and may be nearing a selection.

2. President, Healthcare Institute of New Jersey - Great job, huge shoes to fill. The Presidency of HINJ, which was left vacant by the tragic death of former Congressman Bob Franks is still vacant. You report directly to the CEO's of the state's pharmaceutical and medical device companies and you inherit one of the most professional staffs in New Jersey. See note above regarding hurrying.

3. President, New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce - Looking for instant prestige? This is your job. The President of the State Chamber automatically qualifies for a large stage and huge microphone. People listen when you speak. Just be careful what you say. Good pay, great board.

4. First Vice President, New Jersey Business and Industry Association - This is the position vacated when longtime NJBIA senior executive Art Maurice left to take a position at a lobbying firm. Answerable only to the President and the Board, this key New Jersey player has traditionally played a key role in deciding where the very healthy NJBIA "New Jobs" Political Action Committee plays. Legislators care about this particular position.

5. Chief of Staff, Bergen County Executive - Kathe Donovan's "right hand." Largest county in the state; most important politically. This is a job that matters. The transition team was just announced. Take a look at who is on it and see who you know. If you have questions about what the job entails, give Jerry Binney a call up at the DeCotiis firm. He did it longer than anyone else.

6. Commissioner of Education, State of New Jersey - It is still a good job with good benefits even if it does come with a whole host of built-in problems: Predecessor was a ticking time bomb; There is no money; The teachers are angry; Legislators call you ALL the time. But if you love policy and truly want to make a difference, this is the job for you. Credentials are key here. Political hacks need not apply.

7. Administrative Assistant, Congressman-elect Jon Runyan - Ready for a change of scenery, but with PAID trips back home to New Jersey? This is your job. Working for a Congressman on Capitol Hill is cool. Working for a "celebrity" Congressman on Capitol Hill is double-cool. Remember this fact of life: Politicians and the people who associate with them are sports and entertainment "groupies." And many sports and entertainment people are political junkies. (Can you say Sean Penn?) The Runyan office (probably on the fifth floor of the Cannon building) will be the epicenter of much of that commingling.

8. Director, Central Staff, Office of Legislative Services - This vacancy was recently created when longtime Director Glenn Moore retired. You answer to Albert Porroni and a Legislative Commission that meets every second or third Blue Moon. You inherit the single most professional expert staff in the nation. 

Many thanks to Haskell Berman at HINJ for helping me compile this list.

The Frustrated Electorate

Pundits, columnists and bloggers of all stripes have attempted to characterize the political mood in the upcoming election. They have called the 2010 voters “angry,” “afraid,” “disappointed,” and even “ignorant,” “misinformed,” and “misguided.” I think there is an element to all of that in the voice that will resound on November 2nd, but I believe it all springs from one word - “frustration.” 

It is not complicated. November 2, 2010 can be summarized in one simple sentence: Americans are frustrated with their government because it has not listened to them.

Healthcare reform, or to call it by its political nomenclature - “Obamacare” - is simply “Exhibit A” in the People v. The Ruling Class. The fate of the substance of healthcare reform and the acceptance of the public of its provisions is not yet known and will not be known for quite some time. But the jury has already spoken on the “process” of reform and delivered its verdict: “Guilty on all counts of the crime of not listening.” On Tuesday, we will know the sentence. I believe it will be punitive. It will be harsher than necessary in an attempt to teach a lesson that will not soon be forgotten by future ruling classes.

Let’s review the facts of just one element of the 2010 Election case:

In the late spring and early summer of 2009, the President and the Democratically controlled Congress began making their plans for healthcare reform known to the nation. Remember what transpired? Americans, by the hundreds of thousands, told their elected Federal representatives “Yeah, not so much.” They went to town meetings; they wrote letters; they made phone calls; they rallied. But the ruling class would not listen and proceeded with hearings and bill writing.

On November 3rd, 2009, the People said, “Hey maybe we should speak a little louder. It does not appears as if they heard us.” They elected Republicans to the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia. 

And finally, on January 19, 2010, the People said, “Oh my goodness, it appears we are not getting through to them at all. Perhaps it is time to shout and scream and act out.” So in the Bluest of American states, in the land of Kennedy and Tip and birthplace of machine politics, they elected Scott Brown, a Republican, to the United States Senate.

Surely, they thought, they will hear us now.

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” into law.

Now the People were seething. But they waited; they plotted; they organized; they planned. 

On Tuesday, they will act. They will act on their frustrations with Obamacare, which, yes, has in some cases led to “anger” and “fear.” They will act on their frustrations about the economy and what they view as the incompetence of their government to deal with it and, yes, many of them are “disappointed.” They will act on their frustration with the mounting federal debt and the spending in Washington, DC, and in Ohio and California and Pennsylvania and nearly every single small and large hamlet, village, town and city. And, oh yes, in some case they may even be “ignorant,” “misinformed” and “misguided.” But guess what? That is their right. Lecturing them and scolding them and questioning their wisdom, as the Ruling Class has done, only makes them angrier. Try that technique with some co-workers, family, friends or students. See where it gets you.

There is an old Chinese proverb that says:

“To listen well, is as powerful a means of influence as to talk well, and is as essential to all true conversation.”

In a few weeks, after they have vented, perhaps a new dialogue will emerge between the People and a reconstituted Ruling Class. Let’s hope so.

Property Tax Death by a Thousand Cuts

It is just a tiny cut. It barely bleeds. But it is a cut nonetheless and (intentionally mixing metaphors) yet another straw on the back of already overburdened property taxpayers. 

“It” is the legislation you surely have heard the most about in the past few weeks - and is not any number of “reform” items in the Governor’s “tool kit,” which has yet to be acted upon by the Legislature. No, “it” is Assembly Bill 3466, “Establishes measure to address harassment, intimidation, and bullying in school settings.”  Not yet known as “Tyler’s Law,” after the tragic case of a Rutger’s student who took his own life following harassment by fellow students, the legislation imposes mandate after mandate after mandate upon state and local schools.

Here is a sampling (taken from the sponsors’ press release):

The bill “requires all teachers, administrators and school board members to complete anti-bullying training; requires public colleges and universities to adopt an anti-bullying policy to include harassment and intimidation and include it in the code of conduct given to all students; provides that the superintendent of schools in each school district must appoint a district anti-bullying coordinator and sets forth the responsibilities of that individual; requires school districts to establish bullying prevention programs or approaches compared to current law under which school districts are only encouraged to establish such programs; provides that a school district's policy on harassment, intimidation, and bullying must include appropriate responses to such actions that occur off school grounds; provides that each school district must form a school safety team in each school in the district to foster and maintain a positive school climate within the schools; provides that by the 2011-2012 school year all candidates for school administrator or teacher certification will be required to complete a program on harassment, intimidation, or bullying prevention, and that training in this area will be a part of the professional development requirements for these individuals; includes training regarding harassment, intimidation and bullying in schools as a part of the training program provided to all school board members; designates the week beginning with the first Monday in October of each year as a "Week of Respect" and requires districts to observe the week by providing age-appropriate instruction focusing on preventing harassment, intimidation or bullying; provides a detailed procedure that must be included in each district's policy concerning the investigation of incidents of harassment, intimidation, or bullying; provides that a school employee or contracted service provider must file a written report with the school principal within two days of observing or being made aware of an act of harassment, intimidation, or bullying; provides that the principal in each public school must appoint the currently employed school guidance counselor, school psychologist or another similarly trained individual as the school anti-bullying specialist (if there is no individual that meets these criteria employed in the school, the principal must appoint another currently employed individual in the school to the position of school anti-bullying specialist.);  and, provides that the superintendent of schools must report to the board of education twice a year, rather than annually, at a public hearing all acts of violence, vandalism and harassment, intimidation, or bullying which occurred during the previous period. 

To assist school districts in meeting the new mandates, the legislation creates a “Bullying Prevention Fund” in the Department of Education to which districts can apply for grants. Raise your hand if you think the fund will a) be enough to cover the cost of the new mandates for every district in the state; and b) never be used for other purposes by the state in tough fiscal times. Those of you who raised your hands can tune into Fox tonight (in certain areas) to enjoy the Yankee-Phillie World Series that you were also led to believe would happen.

When I last checked, the bill had 42 sponsors and cosponsors in the Assembly, more than enough to assure passage.

The bill, if it becomes law, will not prevent bullying. Simply teaching teachers and administrators (who are already taught such things) and requiring them to report on their success will not accomplish anything. Brett Favre has been told over and over again that he should not throw the ball to the other team, but somehow he keeps getting intercepted.

Indeed, according to the New Jersey Department of Education’s own website, “New Jersey has been a leader in the establishment of a strong statutory, regulatory, policy and program framework to support the prevention, remediation and reporting of HIBT (Harassment, Intimidations & Bullying) in schools.  The site provides “information and resources to aid schools in the establishment of HIBT policies, the adoption of HIBT program strategies, the implementation of proactive responses to HIBT and the adoption effective HIBT reporting procedures.” Note: No new law required.

No, unfortunately, we will probably never end bullying amongst the young. There will always be “haves” and “have-nots;” we will always have “weak” and “strong;” there will always be “cool” and “geek” and “nerd;” and, yes, “gay” and “straight.” And there will always be those because of some weakness in THEIR character who will take advantage, bully, punish, torture and otherwise harass those who they see as different. It has been going on since men and women sent their children to the cave down the valley for training.

No law will, however well intentioned, will change that.

But the bill WILL add to our property tax burden. Perhaps maybe not next year or the year after, but eventually it will become part of all that the state requires schools to accomplish. And it will take away from schools a part of a few days that first week in October every year when they were supposed to be teaching the kids how to read and write and do math.

The publicity surrounding the death of Tyler Clementi has already accomplished more than will be achieved by this bill. I am certain that in classrooms across New Jersey and America teachers are using this tragic event as a “learning moment” and doing some good.

Let’s leave it at that and not knee-jerk another new mandate upon our schools. Some day you will thank me. A lot of us are already bleeding to death. We need no new cuts.